Page 8 of Fierce-Baker

“What did Dad do this time?”

“Everything is fine.”

“It’s not. He’s doing it again, right? Has someone else on the side and you found out?”

“He can’t help himself.”

“Mom,” he snapped. He wasn’t sure why the hell he let this bother him so much. His mother made her decisions in this no matter how many times he and his sister Brittany tried to tell her to leave.

“I know. You don’t want to hear excuses. I’ve been distracted lately. I haven’t been giving him the attention he needs.”

He growled. Loudly. His fingers clenched into fists on the desk. His feet flexed on the floor in his boots as if he was going to take off in a dash to give his father a piece of his mind.

Not that it’d change a damn thing.

He barely spoke to the guy for this reason alone and if he was told one more time that his parents’ marriage was theirs to deal with, then it might be the last time he ever talked to the guy again.

Because the truth was, his father was right.

His mother put up with it, and that was on her.

“So now that you found out he’s seeing someone else you’re going to work even harder to make all his special meals, ensure there isn’t one speck of dust in the house, then maybe pick his feet up at the end of the day and rub them for him.”

“Baker, that’s not nice. You make me sound like a servant.”

“Aren’t you to him?”

“I don’t see it that way. I love him. You don’t understand what it’s like to love someone so deeply you can’t see a life without them. I can see past his flaws and he can see past mine.”

Bullshit.

“Then why are you calling me all upset? If you can live with this, what’s the big deal?”

The silence on the other end didn’t help when he heard her choking back the tears. Just like always.

He didn’t want to feel like shit that he might have caused them, but the truth was the truth and he was sick of pretending it wasn’t there.

“I just needed someone to talk to.”

He wanted to tell her to talk to her friends about it, but his mother didn’t have friends. She cut all those women off when they told her the same as he and Brittany had been doing for years.

Maybe if she didn’t get so upset and heartbroken every time she found out her husband had a new sidepiece most people would just accept his parents had an open marriage... on his father’s side only.

“You’re talking and now you’re more upset and got me pissed off. Is that what you really wanted to do?”

“No.” His mother’s voice was soft enough that if he were standing in front of her, he was positive her head would be down as if she were getting disciplined for talking back.

“I don’t know what you want me to say, Mom. Or do. I’ll offer again for you to move out and I’ll help you.”

“I can’t leave your father.”

“You can. You choose not to. I get it—you’re afraid of living on your own. You’re afraid you can’t afford it. You’d be able to because he’d have to give you at least half of everything. That means the value of the house.”

“There isn’t much in the savings.”

“What the fuck,” he said. “Don’t tell me that.”

“I can see the savings. It’s not as high as it used to be.”